With ambitious plans including a double LP and book release, Last in the American League (or LITAL, for short) hopes to not only become a reality, but to be a defining snapshot of a blooming St. Louis creative scene.

Thunder Biscuit Orchestra performed at the Bootleg's soft opening on February 6.

For nearly a decade, the site at 4140 Manchester Avenue has been in flux. The space has had many names -- Novak's, the Spot, Foxhole and, most recently, the Demo. Last Friday, the room reopened as the Bootleg at Atomic Cowboy, the latest addition to the Grove's growing list of concert venues.

"We used to surprise people. We used to enjoy being spontaneous, and we did that right in the midst of our restaurant. Nowadays, we want people to know what they're going to get when they walk through the door," says Atomic Cowboy owner Chip Schloss.

The Tiny Desk Concert series from "All Songs Considered" host Bob Boilen is looking for new talent, and St. Louis is coming out in force.

Who knew that such an itty-bitty desk could have such a big impact?

The Tiny Desk Concert series on National Public Radio (NPR) has been a hit since it was introduced in 2008. During what is literally a bunch of musicians crowding around All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen's office desk to perform a few tunes, the series has showcased different sides of artists such as T-Pain, Skinny Lister and Yo La Tengo. The virality of favorite concerts via social media has given a surge of popularity to retro acts and millions of potential fans to newer bands.

There are plenty of stringed instruments out there -- guitars, banjos, zithers, harps, ukuleles, mandolins. But, as St. Louis musician Bryan Ranney warns, they're not the same thing, dammit.

Besieged over the years with questions about the latter two mentioned above, Ranney is out to set the record straight during his recently launched "Not a Ukulele" tour. Ranney tells RFT Music that upon seeing him play his mandolin, audience members have pondered what it is, grasping only that it's a strangely shaped guitar-type thing and automatically (and kind of inexplicably) assuming that it must be a ukulele. Early on, Ranney even considered creating t-shirts saying "Not a ukulele."

"The idea came to me again a couple of months ago. I thought, 'Hey, I've got a friend who makes t-shirts; I should just run with this,'" Ranney recalls. "From there, I thought I should make a sticker, and then it became a brand for the tour."

Cloud Nothings closes out the Art of Live Festival this Sunday at Old Rock House.

This weekend's Art of Live Festival is sure to shore up communal vibes across five area venues including the Demo, Old Rock House, the Firebird, Off Broadway and the Ready Room. This four-day fest encourages show-hopping by offering $35 wristbands for every event -- without it, you'll pay the typical ticket price at the door. Here we have laid out everything the festival has to offer, with links to music, so you can decide which shows you want to attend. What are you looking forward to? Read on and let us know in the comments section below.

But we've been down this path before. At the end of December 2013, we predicted what might happen for eight local acts that we dubbed "the ones to watch" for 2014. So how did last year turn out for these brilliant creators and performers? We went straight to the musicians themselves to find out. (Not all eight acts could be reached for comment.)

The abundance of musical talent in St. Louis shouldn't surprise us anymore. After all, this is a city that was built upon the talents of Scott Joplin, Tina Turner and Chuck Berry. But damn if we don't get big ol' grins every time a band hits the "click."

You know the click — that period in an act's lifecycle when everything from songwriting to personnel to gig schedule comes together in a power-surge that screams, "Hell yes, this is it!" And when that happens, witnesses can see the elements merging together all Captain Planet-like onstage, adding a special kind of electricity to a performance. It's pretty beautiful.

We see that happening with a lot of St. Louis talent right now, but it's quite pronounced in the acts below. Maybe these folks recently added a surprising instrument to the sound. Maybe they're on a high from a new album. Maybe they just said, "Fuck it, I'm going to finally make the kind of music I love." Whatever they're doing just works, and that's why these are six St. Louis acts we'll be keeping our eyes on in 2015.

Staring at a spot on the floor, a slight young guy in a wool knit cap picked out an ascending line on his acoustic guitar. A few bars later, the violinist came in. Her long sweater swirled around her as she plucked the strings, the two parts bouncing off one another. A third musician, wearing several jackets and a grumpy expression, pulled low notes out of his blond standup bass.

As the guitarist approached the mic to sing, a high-pitched whine shrieked over his voice. Feedback.

Kristian Nairn of Game of Thrones DJs in New York City. See him at Old Rock House on Wednesday, December 10.

What do you say when a star from one of television's most stunning shows announces that he's going to DJ an event in your city?

"Hodor," of course.

On HBO's fantasy hit Game of Thrones, Irish actor Kristian Nairn says nothing but "Hodor" -- a version of his mentally challenged character's name. But get him talking about house music and his upcoming St. Louis show, and Nairn has plenty to reveal.